It is essential to rethink the relationship between meetings and events and climate change, according to BCD Meetings & Events.
BCD M&E's new Sustainability Report for Meetings & Events focuses on the impact the meeting and events and corporate travel industries have on the environment and continues the discussion of how we move towards a more sustainable future, together.
The report, sponsored by Radisson Hotel Group and Liberty International, brings together statistics that show the negative impact meetings and events can have on the environment, highlights the most wasteful and polluting aspects of an event, and advises ways to curtail the impact through sustainable practices.
Food waste, single-use plastic and paper and carbon emissions produced largely by aviation travel are the key themes of the guide. As a reminder, the World Travel & Tourism Council attribute 8-11 per cent of global emissions to travel, a transport method the events industry relies on. In the US alone, 30-40 per cent of food all food produced is wasted. The world consumption of single-use plastics has dramatically increased over the past two years in response to Covid-19 safety, but before the pandemic, the events industry was guilty of producing single-use signage, badges and materials made from plastics and paper.
The guide points out that when the pandemic struck and the world essentially shut down as we knew it, global carbon emissions decreased by 4.6 per cent, the largest drop in world history, largely due to reduced airline operations.
But we don’t need a pandemic to create change going forward.
In the guide, BCD M&E has compiled best practices for creating sustainable events and shared advice on how to use carbon emissions calculators to understand the impact of your event decisions and change them accordingly.
Under ‘CO2 Emissions Reduction’ the keyword is ‘reduce’. Instead of using offsetting programmes, the guide suggests looking at ways to eliminate unnecessary emissions reduction altogether. Seeking out venues with green certification is also advised and rejigging agenda design to reduce excessive delegate travel when aspects of the event could be conducted virtually.
The ‘Food and Waste Reduction’ chapter calls on planners to ‘carefully plan’ catering. Smaller portions, using seasonal foods and choosing sustainable suppliers and all ways of eliminating food waste. In the case where there are leftovers, get familiar with food donation rules.
For ‘Paper and Plastic Use Reduction’ look at digital alternatives. For instance, you can replace printed badges with QR codes scannable from attendees’ phones that they can use to check into sessions, or skip pricey printed signage and use digital signage available through your venue. For plastic reduction, think about recycled alternatives or eliminating certain items, such as plastic water bottles, altogether.
There are plenty more useful tips in the guide. You can check it out here.
A desire to travel led Holly Patrick to the business meetings and events world and she’s never looked back. Holly takes a particular interest in event sustainability and creating a diverse and inclusive industry. When she’s not working, she can be found rolling skating along Brighton seafront listening to an eclectic playlist, featuring the likes of Patti Smith, Sean Paul, and Arooj Aftab.
